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Aruba Remote Access Points vs Cisco IOS SSL VPN comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 6, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Aruba Remote Access Points
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
13th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
21
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cisco IOS SSL VPN
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
14th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
50
Ranking in other categories
SSL VPN (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of Aruba Remote Access Points is 1.2%, up from 1.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco IOS SSL VPN is 3.2%, up from 1.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Aruba Remote Access Points1.2%
Cisco IOS SSL VPN3.2%
Other95.6%
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
 

Featured Reviews

AmrIssa - PeerSpot reviewer
Chief Information Officer at Mobica Advanced
Remote access has provided secure site connectivity and supports centralized on‑prem operations
We have a solution that is completely Aruba, including the controller, access point, and switch. We deploy ClearPass from Aruba in our company on VMware, which integrates well and works without issues. Aruba Remote Access Points are critical for our construction company because we have many sites…
VM
student at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
Cost efficiency and ease of setup define network management while potential improvements in complexity handling are noted
Optimizing and configuring for network segmentation is the biggest thing for helping with segmenting traffic management. Configuring QoS on Linksys is pretty easy, especially compared to Cisco QoS, which I am certified in, as it helps ensure that the bandwidth for voice or other applications doesn't bleed over into the data links. In the past, Linksys has been pretty good at network protection, segmenting off that protection for unauthorized access or cyber threats. Cost savings and ease of use are the benefits I've seen from Linksys. It's a little bit less complex to set up and configure compared to Cisco switching. I utilized the VLAN support feature in the Linksys switches. A lot of the networks I have were broken up by VLAN, and I definitely configured them for different VLANs. The best feature of Linksys in my opinion is cost, as they tend to be more cost-effective compared to larger switches or Cisco switches.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"There are no bad features in Aruba Remote Access Points. Every feature is customized to meet customer requirements according to their limitations, and we can make use of all features to benefit us as needed."
"Aruba Remote Access Points provide a level of protection for our IPs."
"The authentication features are valuable."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is experienced by those working at home since they get a secure Wi-Fi connection."
"This solution is widely adopted and involves both technology and non-technical devices. It is robust, except in cases of significant power outages."
"The platform has the most valuable advanced filtering feature."
"I can use the solution from my home or any remote office to access printers, servers, etc."
"Once we got things set up properly, we just need to do updates, and it just runs."
"While we know that SSL VPN is an advanced technological step towards achieving a more secured network against ever growing multiple networking threats, Cisco's SSL VPN device is definitely a wise choice to pick."
"The solution is very reliable."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN provides fast connectivity and the option to connect through multiple servers."
"The valuable features of Cisco IOS SSL VPN are the ease of use and the speed; it is pretty fast and easy to use, definitely helps with our efficiency as it is one of our primary VPN solutions, and helps with maintaining security."
"It is stable."
"The product is great because it is easy and simple."
"It is a product that is very robust and durable."
"It is a stable solution. In my company, we haven't faced any issues related to the product's stability. I rate the product's stability a ten out of ten."
 

Cons

"Its scalability capabilities should be improved."
"I would rate stability as five out of ten. Sometimes it is stable, and sometimes it is not."
"The solution's technical support has some shortcomings that need improvement."
"But the hardware needs to be revamped when we compare the Meraki solution."
"One thing that would be beneficial is for the Aruba Central mobile app to work more effectively. Currently, it does not function as expected when I really need it."
"They can add more graphical reporting systems so that network admins and system admins get more information about user usage, such as which user, what they use, and when they use it."
"There are some issues, like the VLAN capabilities and support for routing between two VMs."
"To make the solution better, the cloud solution should be more integrated as it has too many different menus, and it would be preferable to have it more cohesive in one solution."
"The solution's graphical user interface is not very user-friendly."
"The solution takes some time to log in because of some unavoidable security barriers, but it would be better if that could happen faster."
"The high price of the product is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"I have no notes in terms of areas of improvement."
"In addition to Cisco, we work with other solutions on behalf of our customers, such as Fortinet for FortiGate, but this latter solution can achieve the same results at a lower price."
"Enhancing the client certificate deployment process could be a valuable improvement, ensuring smoother and more reliable certificate renewal experiences in the future."
"It would be nice if we could use this not just on mobile, but on laptops and desktops as well."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN doesn't support the configuration of multiple VPNs."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"In terms of pricing, we've found Aruba's offerings to be very competitive."
"Price-wise, Aruba Remote Access Points is in the middle, so my rating for its pricing is three out of five."
"Aruba pricing is not very high. They offer competitive pricing for what they provide."
"The price of Aruba Remote Access Points could be better. It is a little expensive."
"You require no separate licensing to convert an access point to RAP."
"Aruba Remote Access Points' pricing is good and affordable."
"There are no other expenses than standard licenses for the product."
"The licensing fee is expensive."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN comes with a cost-effective subscription."
"Users have to pay a yearly licensing fee for Cisco IOS SSL VPN."
"The platform is expensive."
"The pricing of the solution is reasonable"
"It stands as the priciest solution available in the market."
"There are no pricing programs for non-profit organizations and the product is otherwise expensive by comparison."
"My company makes payments on a quarterly basis to the vendor to cover the licensing costs attached to the product. Cisco IOS SSL VPN is an expensive product. There are no additional costs apart from the licensing costs attached to the product."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
16%
Outsourcing Company
14%
Construction Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Construction Company
18%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business8
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise8
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business23
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise26
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Remote Access Points?
We do not use Zero Touch Provisioning with Aruba Remote Access Points because the Aruba device being expensive compared to cheaper Cisco options holds us back.
What needs improvement with Aruba Remote Access Points?
The device requires reconfiguration if we use a standalone setup because the battery fault leads to all configurations resetting. This is a significant area for improvement, especially when the dev...
What is your primary use case for Aruba Remote Access Points?
We have a solution that is completely Aruba, including the controller, access point, and switch. We deploy ClearPass from Aruba in our company on VMware, which integrates well and works without iss...
What needs improvement with Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
I have not found any areas that could be improved so far. I am not sure how Cisco IOS SSL VPN can continue their improvements for the future, but I think it is a great product. To stay on top, they...
What is your primary use case for Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
Currently, I use Cisco IOS SSL VPN to VPN in, but not with high frequency. We use Cisco IOS SSL VPN as our VPN client to connect to our network. This is for health.
 

Also Known As

Aruba RAP
Cisco SSL VPN
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Trafford Metropolitan Borough
MST Systems
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Remote Access Points vs. Cisco IOS SSL VPN and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
920,769 professionals have used our research since 2012.